Vikings

January 11, 2010

It's a new year. The Giants stopped caring about their season in the fall and the Jets are two games away from the SuperBowl (no, I'm not actually that confident). Tony G's risky Minneapolis airplane ticket purchase has high reward. I went to my first hockey game in years and my second is a few weeks away. UConn had a devastating loss to Georgetown. Wes Welker watched the last game of his season. Jayson Williams is going to prison. Spring Training postcards, pamphlets and calendars arrive in my mailbox daily (Twins Postgame Grapefruit Giveaway 3/5; single game tickets on sale 1/16). The Knicks are "suddenly competitive."
What I'm trying to say here is, I have a runny nose. I'm not exactly sick but I need tissues all day long. Scoreboard Gourmet, I still love you. We're nearing the Super Bowl, the most important snack-purchasing day of the entire year, (the second most important snack-purchasing day is the Saturday before the game, which you'd think was the most important but, apparently, many party-hosts seriously procrastinate.)

Speaking of SuperBowl Sunday, the Supervalu inaugural Snack Down Survey found nearly 40 percent of fans associating a special food or snack tradition preference with their favorite NFL or college football team, including:

—In Philadelphia, football fans named Philly cheese steaks as their top game-day snack tradition
—Chicago gridiron fans cited Chicago-style hot dogs and Chicago deep-dish pizza among their special traditions
—In Boston, New England clam chowder and Boston baked beans made area fans’ list of snack traditions
—Cincinnati fans’ quintessential game-day snack food is Skyline or Cincinnati-style chili
—In Baltimore and Washington, D.C. chicken wings tied with chips or other salty snacks as the No. 1 game-day snack. Baltimore fans also unsurprisingly listed crab among their special snack traditions
—In Boise, Idaho potatoes — baked and loaded — naturally made fans’ lineup of special football game-day snack traditions
—In Boston, about 38% of male football fans plan to watch one or more of the NFL playoff games or the Super Bowl at a bar or restaurant this year, vs. only 14% of women. Male gridiron fans in Boston believe they consume more calories at a Super Bowl party (24%) than at a Christmas, Hanukkah or Kwanzaa celebration (17%).

In other news, it's quite likely that Scoreboard Gourmet is going to return to its starting point and focus solely on sports-travel-eating. We shall see. And now, my nose.

December 02, 2009

Minnesota Vikings fans are some of the fattest fans in all of sports. Spend five minutes prowling the corridors of the Mall of America Whatever Dome and you will bear witness to three hundred pounders jostling with four hundred pounders, and their two hundred pound wives. It is really quite something.

So it's no surprise that the predominant odor wafting through the stadiums’ halls is butter* and that the food offerings during the game range from giant burgers to super giant bratwurst, and food that uses the word “colossal” in an un-ironic manner.
Metal buckets of popcorn proliferated, fans were implored through all kinds of gimmicks to eat dangerous foods, and the fried onions and peppers that smothered the cheese steaks were merely confetti on the parade of cholesterol.

How unimportant were healthy food alternatives in the domed stadium? Well, burgers were sold unadorned, save for cheese. Yet lettuce and tomato trapped in cellophane packaging sat stacked behind the counter and available only upon request; clearly the food services company knows its audience.
I deem Vikings fans are only some of the fattest because the Vikings opponents on this day, the Chicago Bears, in some perverse bragging rights universe, brought along The Fattest Fans in Sports. From the naked eye, they appeared to be 30% larger than Vikings supporters, with quadruple chins stretching ruddy complexions beyond comfortable sizes. And that was just the children.

Throughout the game the concessions were buzzing. From the corndogs sold just outside the entry gates to the pork barbecue platters to all sorts of midwestern microbrews, food was consumed at an alarming rate. The sound of gnashing teeth was an unsettling one, to be sure.
But at least the Vikings prevailed 36-10. And everyone went home happy and woefully overfed. Otherwise, I would be forced to make a Biggest Loser joke and, let’s face it, I don’t feel like tangling with am angry behemoth if I can at all avoid it.

*Editor's Note: since the Metrodome is all enclosed, all cooking smells linger, one of the reasons they actually have a limited number of stands selling fried foods.

November 29, 2009

Is that new name 16 syllables? Wow. I know it's a month old but I've been busy wondering why New Orleans is known to be a restaurant town when the restaurants, while not exactly bad, are not great, and the service is disturbing. Makes me want to go running back to a real food city where everyone from hostess to bartender to manager to server to sommelier knows how to treat a customer. Again, I'm not saying things were exactly bad, but they were, well, lame. The best service we had in town, amazing service actually, was at the Soniat House, our hotel. The city's restaurant staff should undergo training with the Soniat people, then we can tackle the inconsistencies in food.

In the meantime, let's think about the Vikings. Tony Gervino is out in Minneapolis doing some reporting for ScoreboardGourmet, who only knows The Metrodome as The Metrodome.

November 05, 2009

A friend of mine is a mega Vikings fan, which is based almost entirely on his love of purple, and skol. I'm kidding. The Vikings next game is 11/15 v the Lions. Kickoff is 12pm, but the Plaza area opens at 9:30am for a pre-game Party. Buffalo Wild Wings and Famous Dave's will be there. The question is - Will There Be Mini Doughnuts?

August 18, 2009

I like how I'm copying the clip-art-like AYCE logo. I really need to take some art/design classes. Until that happens, let's talk about the Twins. For three more games this season (8/25 Orioles, 9/1 White Sox, 9/15 Indians), $34 gets you a Metrodome Upper Club seat (sections 232 & 233) and all the "Field Fare" you can eat (that's hot dogs, nachos, popcorn, peanuts, soft pretzels, fountain soda, and water; you can get two at a time). Bring 24+ friends and that price goes down to $30. AYCE does Not include beer, ice cream or candy, but those items are sold nearby. AYCE ends at 9pm. When You buy tickets, use this code: AYCE.

May 27, 2009

Yes I'm still stuck in Minneapolis. Cuddyer did just hit for the cycle; it's not like that town is short on interesting news. Anyway, I'm reinstating the Guest Post portion of the site, thanks to my friend, a writer, Tony G, who lo+ves him a nonchewy steak...

It was a few years ago and I was visiting the Twin Cities to witness the Vikings lose to the Green Bay Packers, an event that was something like getting shot with a nail gun. On my way into downtown Minneapolis, in a December snowstorm, I had asked the cab driver, an old codger, which restaurant served the best steak in town. He seemed like he had eaten a few, back when his teeth were in working order. Or even lived in his mouth full-time.
He didn’t pause before saying, “Murrays on Fifth” and proceeded to tell me about the time he drove a limo and deposited the Rat Pack (Frank, Dino, Sammy and Joey) there some thirty years earlier. Apparently, Murrays, a local institution for over fifty years, was the go-to place for hipsters back in the day, and remains the secret spot for local athletes. And Prince. Seriously.
“But what about the steak?” I enquired. I hate hipsters, after all. He then told me about steak so tender you could actually cut it with a butter knife. It was called the “Silver Butter Knife Steak.” Oh dear. I can barely remember saying, “Take me there,” through the haze of expectation mixed with a little drool.

My first visit, and every one since, has been an orgiastic event of ordering and eating. Some highlights: the spaetzle mac-and-cheese, fried walleye cheeks and shrimp wrapped in bacon, sautéed in barbecue sauce. The bread they provide on the table appears to have been dipped in butter, seasoned and baked.
Murrays offers the requisite pork chops and other steakhouse fare like tuna and swordfish. But, listen; if you aren’t going for the steak, you are a fool.
Carved tableside, the steak sits atop a platter of sizzling butter and is perfectly seasoned. And true to its Midwestern roots, the portions are somewhere just beyond enormous.
One quibble I did have with Murrays is that the name ‘Silver Butter Knife Steak’ is misleading.
You can actually cut it with a fork.

May 16, 2009

Lipgloss & Baseball Jen told me about the sundaes at the Metrodome even before I got on the plane. Ice Cream, Brats, and the Twins, some of the things she loves (that's not a quote; it's an observation). But she didn't tell me that They Make the Cones On-Premise (Jen, did you know that? isn't that cool?).

May 15, 2009

You know I'm a pretty big fan of Rescue Vitamin Water (that's the green tea one and it's surprisingly hard to find). And I'm an even bigger fan of non-soda, non-alcohol options at sports events (also surprisingly hard to find). The Metrodome has an answer: 4 types of Vitamin Water (Centerplate told me these 4 are NCAA approved, but I'm not sure about that).

Anyway, can you believe I had to go all the way to Minneapolis to get my first taste of Sync? It's fruit-punchy. Dear Vitamin Water, I would be your biggest fan ever if you weren't lying to us about Youknowwhat.

May 14, 2009

When I hear "carvery" I think Ireland, but this $7.75 Hand Carved Sandwich Platter was made for me at the Metrodome. As you can see, it comes with Caesar Salad. TFMJ Loves Caesar.

The stand is called Minnesota Carvery. It's always open on the Field Level. On weekends and when there's a big sellout (25,000+ fans) there's a Carvery on the 2nd level too. Choices: Roast Beef (pictured) or Turkey on an egg bun with salad and a pickle. Or, you can skip the bun and get extra salad, also $7.75.

I added horseradish sauce; more creamy than biting. Verdict: enjoyed it (though meat wasn't exactly buttery it was flavorful and easy to chew). Did not need the pickle. This is a great share meal (so you can leave room for, oh, brats, dogs, mini doughnuts, and Walkaway Sundaes, to start).

May 13, 2009

You know how I sometimes make new friends who are Mets fans and writers? It's happening alot this year.

My newest Metsfanwriter friend is named Tony. He's also a Vikings fan, and Minneapolis fan. Tony says the Best Restaurant In The Country is Murray's. And when I think who best to identify great restaurants, I think Vikings fans. I'm funny today.

Seriously, though, I'm asking Tony to write a little review for us. Two reviews, actually. One Before football starts, and One After a game he attends this season. He's going to two.